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Muay thai
Bàng Thị Mai of Việt Nam (proper) lands a kick on April Pleasure La Madrid of the Philippines on the World Muay Thai Championship in Thailand in December. Mai gained the bout. Photograph courtesy of Trịnh Nam Thái
Thanh Hà
HÀ NỘI Successful nationwide tournaments in 4 totally different martial arts disciplines isn’t any massive deal for Bàng Thị Mai. On prime of that, she has added a gold medal from the Muay Thai World Championships, held in Thailand in December, to her assortment.
The ethnic minority fighter gained followers throughout the nation when she gained gold on the World Muay Thai Championships in December within the girls’s U23 Elite 60kg class.
It’s a dream come true for the martial arts lover, who has promised to contribute her greatest to fight sports activities.
“It was my first World Championship. I used to be excited to participate in such an enormous match and I skilled laborious for my debut,” Mai advised Việt Nam Information.
Mai took two straightforward wins to advance to the ladies’s ultimate the place she met Iranian Fatemeh Hosseini Kahaki, who had knocked out each her opponents in her path to the ultimate.
It was a troublesome problem for the Vietnamese fighter who was smaller, shorter and fewer skilled than her opponent.
Kahaki took filled with her attain benefit to attain factors from the bell and gained the scorecard within the first spherical.
Nonetheless, the minute break between rounds was helpful for Mai.
Coach Nguyễn Huy Thịnh requested her to vary ways, closing the space extra with Kahaki to make use of her knees within the clinch.
“Kahaki was bodily sturdy. She fought aggressively within the first spherical. However I discovered that she was not good with knees. If Mai received nearer to her she wouldn’t know what to do,” mentioned Coach Nguyễn Huy Thịnh.
“Actually, Mai’s physique was her weak level. She was exhausted resisting Kahaki within the first spherical. She dropped behind within the second spherical too, so I needed to scream loud to elevate her spirits whereas reminding her of our ways.”
The judges scored the second spherical as a draw, however Mai was extra assured going into the ultimate spherical, which she gained by way of factors.
Bàng Thị Mai (proper), previous to the ultimate on the World Muay Thai Championship U23 60kg class. Mai went on to win the struggle and take gold. Photograph courtsey of Trịnh Nam Thái
“I knew the World Championship can be very tough. I used to be a brand new face of the match so I simply tried my greatest in each match, preventing for the nation and myself,” mentioned Mai.
“My ultimate rival was actually powerful. She is greater and taller than me however I obtained sturdy assist from nationwide coaches, in addition to my native membership coach, who helped me repair my errors day by day. They helped me to win the ultimate and take my first world gold.”
Supporting her athlete on-line, coach Đỗ Thị Thúy mentioned they researched her rivals rigorously, adjusting her coaching and ways to take advantage of their weak point.
“Watching her within the first matches, I knew Mai spent lots of power to win. However I suggested her to maintain constructive and stay relaxed, resting sufficient to get better nicely for the subsequent struggle. It is necessary for her to be ready to beat her limits,” mentioned Thúy.
It was the primary title struggle for the 21-year-old, serving to Việt Nam to complete the match with two golds, one silver and three bronzes. It was a profitable end result for the workforce after world champions Nguyễn Trần Duy Nhất and Bùi Yến Ly have been stopped from early rounds.
Martial arts lover
Mai was born in 1999 to a Cao Lan ethnic minority household within the northern province of Thái Nguyên.
Bàng Thị Mai (proper) trains in 4 totally different martial arts. She is the nationwide champion of all 4. Photograph sotp.thainguyen.gov.vn
Martial arts should not highly regarded in her hometown however the little lady satisfied her mother and father to let her be a part of a wushu’s sanshou (fight self-discipline) membership when she was 14.
Her ardour and expertise made her a member of Thái Nguyên workforce in 2013. And he or she grabbed silver on the nationwide youth championship only a few months later.
Muay Thai and kickboxing have been comparatively new sports activities within the province on the time. It was tough to recruit athletes so the provincial sports activities officers determined to determine new groups from athletes of different martial artists. Mai, who additionally practised conventional Vietnamese martial artwork, was one in every of them.
“I used to be confused in the best way of preventing and laws when practising Muay Thai and kickboxing. For instance, in Muay Thai, it’s allowed to assault with elbows and knees, which you can not do in sanshou or kickboxing,” mentioned Mai.
“Nonetheless, punching and kicking have been far more acquainted. I simply wanted to practise more durable slightly to handle all abilities and strategies.”
In 2019, Mai made her worldwide debut on the Asian Muay Thai Championship and gained a bronze medal within the UAE.
Final 12 months she was a phenomenon within the nationwide martial artwork neighborhood, profitable titles in nationwide tournaments in wushu, Muay Thai, kickboxing and conventional martial arts.
Bàng Thị Mai (left) competing at the nationwide Muay Thai championships in 2020. Photograph webthethao.vn
“I really like martial arts. It’s of no significance whether or not the athlete is male or feminine. All you want to achieve success is ardour and willpower,” mentioned Mai, whose World Championship gold supplies an ideal platform for her within the run-up to Southeast (SEA) Video games in Might in Hà Nội.
“This will probably be my first SEA Video games. Being an athlete from the host nation is not going to vary my coaching schedule. I’m nonetheless working laborious, sharpening my abilities to seize the very best end result for Việt Nam and my Thái Nguyên Province too.” VNS
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